LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- If you plan to go to Kentucky Kingdom, make sure to grab your face mask first.
They have so far been optional for guests at the amusement park, but face masks are now required to get through the gates, along with usual temperature check.
The policy change came just a few days after Gov. Andy Beshear’s mask mandate.
“This is in response to the state's directive that came out last Thursday and also in response to doing what is best for our guests and team members and doing everything we can to make sure everybody is having a safe and healthy experience,” Kentucky Kingdom spokeswoman Jessi O’Daniel said.
Guests who arrive without masks can buy one for $1.
O’Daniel said once guests pass the gate, masks are not required in outdoor spaces, such as Hurricane Bay, as long as they maintain social distancing.
(Courtesy of Kentucky Kingdom)
“We have plenty of acreage for you to be able to spread out and not have to wear that mask when you're outdoors,” she said.
But indoors, like inside restaurants and gift shops, the masks are required.
Kentucky Kingdom is also using some public safety staff as “social distancing monitors” to encourage guests to spread out.
With the number of COVID-19 cases rising, the park said it's doing what it can to remain open.
O'Daniel said the new rules are not in response to a corrective order issued by the Louisville Metro Health Department last week, which she said was simply a misunderstanding.
“We feel very confident in all of our protocols and procedures that we're doing and that we're doing everything we can,” O’Daniel said. “And we'll leave no option off the table.”
Mark Burris, who was waiting to enter the park Tuesday with his two granddaughters, said he had no problem with the new rules.
“I'm one of those people who can get sick easier as we get older, but I come because of them,” he said, pointing to the children.
Liz Buckler and her family were making their first trip to the park after visiting the hotspot of Florida and spending three weeks in self-quarantine.
“We want our state to be open, then we've got to do things to protect ourselves and protect others,” she said.
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